Two unfinished Monaros and a rusty Commodore
Discussion
The last few years have been well, odd. I'm a lifelong petrol-head having owned enough cars/trucks to have one for every year of my life. So here I am, on the run-up to my 50th and I don't own a road-worthy vehicle. That's not to say I don't drive. I get to use the wife's Audi Q3 when she's not shopping or the kids' Fiat 500 Sport when they're a Uni. Nice.
I've been trying to figure out if I'm having a mid-life crisis. There's a nice 991 Porsche around the corner, one of my neighbours just chopped his C63 AMG for a 66-plate RS6 and another regularly has his old man turn up in a DB9. They look great. Better than great, actually. Brilliant. I'd really, really like something considered 'super', but I've never been one to buy the obvious choice. The urge just isn't there, even if the land-mark birthday, bald patch, paunch and worn out body parts suggest it should be.
If you look back a few years, you'll find I posted two readers' cars threads from when everything made sense to me:
The first thread covered the build and subsequent demise of my 1200hp street-legal Monaro which was everything I ever wanted: a preposterous amount of pub-bragging BHP and the ability to run low ten second quarter miles without trying. It looked pretty cool too...
The second thread covered the build of my barely street-legal 1500hp(ish) Audi Coupe. While I've managed mid-eight second passes in this, it's more of a dragster than a car.
So, if I was happier back then, how come I'm where I am? No car and no direction. Well, when I started thinking about what's holding me back, I found that I keep coming back to three cars that have absorbed my free time (and driveway space) for the past few years. So, I figured that, by way of clearing my head, I'd start a build thread for the lot of them. This would necessitate a bit of digging, as the builds actually started a few years ago...
I've been trying to figure out if I'm having a mid-life crisis. There's a nice 991 Porsche around the corner, one of my neighbours just chopped his C63 AMG for a 66-plate RS6 and another regularly has his old man turn up in a DB9. They look great. Better than great, actually. Brilliant. I'd really, really like something considered 'super', but I've never been one to buy the obvious choice. The urge just isn't there, even if the land-mark birthday, bald patch, paunch and worn out body parts suggest it should be.
If you look back a few years, you'll find I posted two readers' cars threads from when everything made sense to me:
The first thread covered the build and subsequent demise of my 1200hp street-legal Monaro which was everything I ever wanted: a preposterous amount of pub-bragging BHP and the ability to run low ten second quarter miles without trying. It looked pretty cool too...
The second thread covered the build of my barely street-legal 1500hp(ish) Audi Coupe. While I've managed mid-eight second passes in this, it's more of a dragster than a car.
So, if I was happier back then, how come I'm where I am? No car and no direction. Well, when I started thinking about what's holding me back, I found that I keep coming back to three cars that have absorbed my free time (and driveway space) for the past few years. So, I figured that, by way of clearing my head, I'd start a build thread for the lot of them. This would necessitate a bit of digging, as the builds actually started a few years ago...
Well, I’ve just got back from a short break in Eastbourne for the wife’s birthday. Earlier this week, I was feeling old and past it. That’s all changed now, having seen so many Wallace Arnold coaches packed with silver haired day trippers. Highlight of the visit (well for me) was a ride along the promenade in a 1927 Rolls Royce. Loved the way Geoff (our chauffeur) pulled over to ask two holiday-makers for directions to Lidl.
I’ve spent the morning pulling together pictures and getting the timeline for this build sorted. I thought I’d begin where the other threads left off.
Red Monaro VXR
Well here she is on the trailer at the 2012 Mopar Nationals. At the time, I had hopes that a good body-shop could breath life back into the old girl. Everyone there on the day had a “he’ll come to his senses” look on their faces, which I did do by September.
The panel gaps on the opposite front wing had closed up, indicating how bent the chassis was. I retired the car, stripping the shell of everything of worth. The wreck languished on a farm for quite a while before being taken away by Monaro breaker, Gary ‘raving’ Clay.
Sad to see what such a beautiful car can turn into.
Audi Coupe
Having modified his old Street Eliminator to take my LSX427 motor, John Sleath was good enough to support me through a few trial outings at York Raceway. It was 2013 and by this point, I’d given myself over to the world of drag racing. This generally entails not worrying too much about how many cable ties are used to hold the car together, smelling (make that stinking) of oil and unburned fuel, and not washing for an entire weekend.
BTW That blue truck weighs 6000lbs and runs 0-60 in 3.3 seconds and high-tens on stock tyres
To say I was sh*t at the beginning is an understatement. For some reason, I took quite a while to remember that a reverse pattern change works, well, the other way around. Note to self: Downshifts at the limiter are a bad idea. And, while very impressive, my burn-out strategies generally left me in a car full of tyre smoke.
I did improve, though, and soon ran in the nines. As a testament to the car, the only change we had to apply was a 1/6 turn of a nut on the 4-link to stop it pulling slightly right at launch. Wheelies and 8.9 second passes soon followed, along with feeling that I’d finally put the Monaro crash behind me.
I did my best to avoid racing anyone else, as I figured there was still too much to learn. If you’ve never run a dragster before, this might seem odd. Try remembering what it was like the first time you drove a car. That’s how I felt trying to master a trans-brake launch. By August there was no avoiding it: I had to race. I signed up for both Pro-ET (bracket racing) and Super Cup (heads up). The most amazing stroke of beginner’s luck and one really great car meant that I won both and ended up with plastic trophies to prove it too!
I entered the 2014 Super Cup series with one thing on my mind: Winning. I figured that the easy route through to this was turning up at every event. The wife had other ideas and booked two weeks in the Med when I was meant to be racing. She tells me I made the right choice and that the points I would have won meant nothing. That's Woman Maths for you.
Fondest memory of the season came in May, when I put in two successive PBs to beat Pel Norman’s Shogun Capri in the semi and Andy Hadfield’s Twister in the final. The wonders of adjustable boost control
Me (PRO113) vs. Twister
Despite some epic races, I came runner up to Paul Grainger in his magnificent Heartache and Pain. Ironically, I lost when John Sleath beat me by a gnat’s whisker in his diesel dragster at the end of the season (diesel ffs!!!). If the race had gone the other way, I’d have taken the series. Of course, I’m not bitter or full of regret
I haven’t raced since. Work and personal commitments have got in the way. The Audi is ‘resting’ on axle stands, waiting for that glorious day when I make my come-back.
Footnote: You may have noticed I'm rambling a bit and that the thread hasn't actually mentioned the title cars yet. I'll do my best to address that...
I’ve spent the morning pulling together pictures and getting the timeline for this build sorted. I thought I’d begin where the other threads left off.
Red Monaro VXR
Well here she is on the trailer at the 2012 Mopar Nationals. At the time, I had hopes that a good body-shop could breath life back into the old girl. Everyone there on the day had a “he’ll come to his senses” look on their faces, which I did do by September.
The panel gaps on the opposite front wing had closed up, indicating how bent the chassis was. I retired the car, stripping the shell of everything of worth. The wreck languished on a farm for quite a while before being taken away by Monaro breaker, Gary ‘raving’ Clay.
Sad to see what such a beautiful car can turn into.
Audi Coupe
Having modified his old Street Eliminator to take my LSX427 motor, John Sleath was good enough to support me through a few trial outings at York Raceway. It was 2013 and by this point, I’d given myself over to the world of drag racing. This generally entails not worrying too much about how many cable ties are used to hold the car together, smelling (make that stinking) of oil and unburned fuel, and not washing for an entire weekend.
BTW That blue truck weighs 6000lbs and runs 0-60 in 3.3 seconds and high-tens on stock tyres
To say I was sh*t at the beginning is an understatement. For some reason, I took quite a while to remember that a reverse pattern change works, well, the other way around. Note to self: Downshifts at the limiter are a bad idea. And, while very impressive, my burn-out strategies generally left me in a car full of tyre smoke.
I did improve, though, and soon ran in the nines. As a testament to the car, the only change we had to apply was a 1/6 turn of a nut on the 4-link to stop it pulling slightly right at launch. Wheelies and 8.9 second passes soon followed, along with feeling that I’d finally put the Monaro crash behind me.
I did my best to avoid racing anyone else, as I figured there was still too much to learn. If you’ve never run a dragster before, this might seem odd. Try remembering what it was like the first time you drove a car. That’s how I felt trying to master a trans-brake launch. By August there was no avoiding it: I had to race. I signed up for both Pro-ET (bracket racing) and Super Cup (heads up). The most amazing stroke of beginner’s luck and one really great car meant that I won both and ended up with plastic trophies to prove it too!
I entered the 2014 Super Cup series with one thing on my mind: Winning. I figured that the easy route through to this was turning up at every event. The wife had other ideas and booked two weeks in the Med when I was meant to be racing. She tells me I made the right choice and that the points I would have won meant nothing. That's Woman Maths for you.
Fondest memory of the season came in May, when I put in two successive PBs to beat Pel Norman’s Shogun Capri in the semi and Andy Hadfield’s Twister in the final. The wonders of adjustable boost control
Me (PRO113) vs. Twister
Despite some epic races, I came runner up to Paul Grainger in his magnificent Heartache and Pain. Ironically, I lost when John Sleath beat me by a gnat’s whisker in his diesel dragster at the end of the season (diesel ffs!!!). If the race had gone the other way, I’d have taken the series. Of course, I’m not bitter or full of regret
I haven’t raced since. Work and personal commitments have got in the way. The Audi is ‘resting’ on axle stands, waiting for that glorious day when I make my come-back.
Footnote: You may have noticed I'm rambling a bit and that the thread hasn't actually mentioned the title cars yet. I'll do my best to address that...
Jimmy Recard said:
What happened to the red Monaro? Did I miss that?
Read the Audi thread and you'll find the link to the Monaro thread (bottom of page 1)http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=127...
Two month since the last posting...hmmm must try harder
Looking back, the thread should have been called "Two unfinished Monaros, a rusty Commodore and a Commodore shell". That was too much of a mouthful, so one car had to go from the title. So, long story short...
I'd purchased the engine for my red Monaro from a an Aussie called Ryan. Part of the deal involved some headers, which he ended up wanting to keep. He offered me a set of 90/10 front shocks that would fit the Ro, which I accepted in exchange. Trouble was that these were attached to a rolling Commodore shell, so I had to wait for him to dispose of the shell first. When Ryan decided to go back to Oz, he gave me the whole car. The shocks were removed and attached to the Ro, which was crashed on its second run post fitting. I'm guessing around 12-seconds of use for the shocks is a record by anyone's standards.
Having realised that the Ro was fubar, my first thought was to shift everything over to the Commodore. It had a rust free shell, but had never been registered over here:
Before the project got going, I bought the Audi roller, so the Commodore became surplus to requirements. John kindly stored both the Ro and Commodore for a while:
Both cars eventually ended up with Gary Clay, who keeps a yard full of dead Holdens, HSVs, Monaros and VXR8s.
Looking back, the thread should have been called "Two unfinished Monaros, a rusty Commodore and a Commodore shell". That was too much of a mouthful, so one car had to go from the title. So, long story short...
I'd purchased the engine for my red Monaro from a an Aussie called Ryan. Part of the deal involved some headers, which he ended up wanting to keep. He offered me a set of 90/10 front shocks that would fit the Ro, which I accepted in exchange. Trouble was that these were attached to a rolling Commodore shell, so I had to wait for him to dispose of the shell first. When Ryan decided to go back to Oz, he gave me the whole car. The shocks were removed and attached to the Ro, which was crashed on its second run post fitting. I'm guessing around 12-seconds of use for the shocks is a record by anyone's standards.
Having realised that the Ro was fubar, my first thought was to shift everything over to the Commodore. It had a rust free shell, but had never been registered over here:
Before the project got going, I bought the Audi roller, so the Commodore became surplus to requirements. John kindly stored both the Ro and Commodore for a while:
Both cars eventually ended up with Gary Clay, who keeps a yard full of dead Holdens, HSVs, Monaros and VXR8s.
Talking about Gary neatly leads me onto the first unfinished Monaro 
While I was getting over the loss of the red Ro and hatching plans to convert the black Commodore into my next Pro Street car, Gary came up with a proposition regarding a lovely blue CV8 roller that he had in his yard. Bear in mind that this was back in 2012...
It's an unusual blue and looked pretty smart at Thunder Road:
I had a few leftover VXR bits and so began the longest, long distance build ever. This has involved sourcing VXR front and rear bumpers, 2005 VXR alloys (the ones on it were Gary's), VXR skirts, a 2005 VXR bonnet and having all the bits painted up. I say long distance, as the car is still at Gary's yard, on the other side of the country, 4-years later.
Starting with this
Adding a bonnet
Body kit back from the paint shop
The wheels are like hen's teeth, so when a set come up on eBay the Buy-it-now button almost broke with the hammering I gave it. I must mention here that I am an eBay addict, much to my wife's annoyance. I seem to able to accumulate wheels like there're going out of fashion. I've assured her that it all makes sense and when I can figure it out myself she'll get a full explanation.
The engine was sourced from a Forum member, making it's way to Gary via the eponymous 'rusty Commodore' (more of which later). The T56 box was sourced needing a light rebuild. Ironically, this turned out to be debris left in the box on an earlier attempt to fix it.
Other parts have come from the 'rusty Commodore' itself, after I took the hard decision to break it.
The car is now a glorious pile of bits at Wye Valley Garage, awaiting that happy day when I sort out getting it assembled. I was tempted to make an enormous box with a picture of a Monaro on the front. I could then sell it as a Man-Puzzle. I'm sure it would make a great Chrimbo prezzie
While I was getting over the loss of the red Ro and hatching plans to convert the black Commodore into my next Pro Street car, Gary came up with a proposition regarding a lovely blue CV8 roller that he had in his yard. Bear in mind that this was back in 2012...
It's an unusual blue and looked pretty smart at Thunder Road:
I had a few leftover VXR bits and so began the longest, long distance build ever. This has involved sourcing VXR front and rear bumpers, 2005 VXR alloys (the ones on it were Gary's), VXR skirts, a 2005 VXR bonnet and having all the bits painted up. I say long distance, as the car is still at Gary's yard, on the other side of the country, 4-years later.
Starting with this
Adding a bonnet
Body kit back from the paint shop
The wheels are like hen's teeth, so when a set come up on eBay the Buy-it-now button almost broke with the hammering I gave it. I must mention here that I am an eBay addict, much to my wife's annoyance. I seem to able to accumulate wheels like there're going out of fashion. I've assured her that it all makes sense and when I can figure it out myself she'll get a full explanation.
The engine was sourced from a Forum member, making it's way to Gary via the eponymous 'rusty Commodore' (more of which later). The T56 box was sourced needing a light rebuild. Ironically, this turned out to be debris left in the box on an earlier attempt to fix it.
Other parts have come from the 'rusty Commodore' itself, after I took the hard decision to break it.
The car is now a glorious pile of bits at Wye Valley Garage, awaiting that happy day when I sort out getting it assembled. I was tempted to make an enormous box with a picture of a Monaro on the front. I could then sell it as a Man-Puzzle. I'm sure it would make a great Chrimbo prezzie
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